Ice Breakers returned to the Toronto waterfront once again last month. In mid-January five interactive art installations were built along Queens Quay West between the Harbourfront Centre in the east and the Music Garden in the west.

below: Appropriate for a space called the Music Garden, is a large structure supporting many wind chimes. This is “Ensemble” by Joao Araujo Sousa and Joana Correia Silva of Portugal.

There are two installations in H2O Park.

below: On the west side of the park is “Winter Fanfare” by Thena Tak of Vancouver. It is made from painted layers of wood. After I had walked past this installation I happened to look back to see a group of boys using these wood forms as protection as they had a snow ball fight.

below: Also in H2O park is “Through the Eyes of the Bear”. This giant bear, or rather parts of a bear, is the creation of Tanya Goertzen of Calgary.

below: The large head of the bear is open at the back. With a little crouching you can go inside and look out through the bear’s eyes. It’s got a great view of the CN Tower!

below: Close to the Simcoe Wave Deck (at the bottom of Simcoe Street) is a structure called “Black Bamboo” that you can walk through. It was designed by Bennet Marburger and Ji Zhang of China.

below: Last is “Root Cabin”, a small hut constructed from large tree roots. The day that I walked past these Ice Breakers was early on when they weren’t quite complete. The roots were being arranged, like a puzzle being put together. The pink frame was being used as a guide and the plan was to remove it once the roots were in place. This installation was designed by Liz Wreford and Peter Sampson from Winnipeg.